Throughout the history of game studies, intellectual debates have sought to identify scholars have reflected on the essential features of games. In the past decade, these discussions have extended beyond academia to the broader gaming community, where certain genres have been elevated as “real games.” Genres like walking simulators, dating sims, visual novels, and hybrid forms are often at the center of these debates. , criticized for their simplicity, lack of challenge, or sometimes overtly sexual content. Despite this, the popularity of these genres is undeniable: since 2007, over 50,000 titles have been documented on the Visual Novel Database, and thousands of walking simulators are available on Steam and other platforms. Many of these titles also appear on MobyGames and have been referenced as “games” throughout history. In this article, we delve into this vast and often overlooked corpus to examine the qualities that can elevate gameplay to unreal levels.

Carl Therrien

Jean-Charles Ray

Laurie-Mei Ross Dionne

Fabienne Sacy

Games and Culture

Games and Culture publishes innovative theoretical and empirical research about games and culture within the context of interactive media. The journal serves as a premiere outlet for groundbreaking and germinal work in the field of game studies. The journal"s scope includes the sociocultural, political, and economic dimensions of gaming from a wide variety of perspectives, including textual analysis, political economy, cultural studies, ethnography, critical race studies, gender studies, media studies, public policy, international relations, and communication studies.

Games and Culture publishes innovative theoretical and empirical research about games and culture within the context of interactive media. The journal serves as a premier outlet for groundbreaking and foundational work in the field of game studies. Its scope includes the sociocultural, political, and economic dimensions of gaming, explored from a variety of perspectives, including textual analysis, political economy, cultural studies, ethnography, critical race studies, gender studies, media studies, public policy, international relations, and communication studies.

《Games and Culture》期刊发表关于游戏与文化的创新理论和实证研究，特别是在互动媒体的背景下。该期刊是游戏研究领域开创性和基础性工作的首要出版平台。期刊的范围涵盖了游戏的社会文化、政治和经济维度，采用多种视角进行探讨，包括文本分析、政治经济学、文化研究、民族志、批判种族研究、性别研究、媒体研究、公共政策、国际关系和传播研究。

Category	Quartile
文学	2
文学, 文化研究	2
文学, 传播学	4

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Journal Info

Category	Quartile
CULTURAL STUDIES	1